Industrywide, U.S. auto sales for 2012 are expected to show a 13 percent rise to 14.5 million new vehicles, the best showing since 2007, driven by the slowly recovering economy, more available credit and the need to replace aging cars and trucks.

Polk, a research consulting firm, said it expects U.S. auto sales to hit 15.3 million in 2013, an increase of nearly 7 percent.